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3 SheetsSheet 1.

(No Model.)

0. W. WHITE; COTTON GLEANING AND MATTRESS STUFFING MACHINE.

Patented Febil5, 1898.

INVENTOR, @KM WM BY a 0 WITNESSES ATTORNEY.

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

G. W. WHITE. COTTON CLEANING AND MATTRESS STUFFING MACHINE. No. 599,049.

Patented Feb. 15, 1898;

Swpmtoz, Q. 91/ m d 3331;; his Elk/berm,

Wbbwmem- Q 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

(No Model.)

C. W. WHITE.

'bTTONfifi-AN'ING AND MATTRESS STUFFING MACHINE.

INVENTOR,

Patented Feb.- 15,

WITNESSES:

ATTORNEY.

m: Nonms PETERS co, wow-Luna, WASHINGTON. o. c.

UNITED STATES PAILNT OFFICE.

CHARLES 7. WHITE, OF W'ACO, TEXAS, ASSIGNOR TO MARY J. WHITE, OF SAMEPLACE.

COTTON-CLEANlNGAND MATTRESS-STUFFING. MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 599,049, dated February15, 1898. Application filed November 3, 1896. Serial No. 610,962. (Nomodel.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES W. WHITE, a citizen of the United States,residing at Waco, Texas, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Ootton-Cleanin g and Mattress-Stuffing Machines, ofwhich the following is a specification. 1

This invention relates to improved machinery for cleaning cotton,forming it into bats, and discharging the bats into mattress-ticks; andthe object is to perform all these different steps in one continuousoperation from the time thecotton is put into a gin or picker till it isforced into ticks or formed into bales. I accomplish all this by thenovel construc: tion and combination of parts hereinafter fullydescribed,and more particularly pointed out in the claims.

Reference is had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of thisspecification.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the invention, the nearer side beingremoved to show the interior arrangement. Fig. 2 is a detailed Viewshowing the adjustable end for making different-sized bats. Fig. 3 is across-section through line X X of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a plan view of aframe for pressing the cotton as soon as there is cotton enough to formthe bat,

this frame being connected to another frame bearing a traveling apronconstituting an auxiliary delivery to the compression rollers. Fig. 5 isa side elevation of the cleaning and bat-forming machine. Fig. 6 is aplan view of a bottom for making different-sized mattresses, and also aplan of the lower piece of the tick-holder. Fig. 7 is a detailed Viewshowing the manner of adjusting the false sides in an open-top box. Fig.8 is a side-elevation of means for adjusting the false sides. Fig. .9 isa vertical sectional View of a gin or picker and the stuffing-machine,showing the cleaning devices.

Similar characters of reference indicate similar parts throughout theseveral views; In carrying out the object of this invention I use a ginor picker for preparing material for mattresses. The gin or pickerillustrated in Fig. 9 is adapted to gin lint-cotton. This gin isprovided with a chute A, leading to the cleaner and condenser-box. Thischute has a perforated partition 10 and a dirt-box 10 provided with asuitable door. The dirt will fall through the partition and go into thedirt-box, whence it can be removed. The material is partially cleanedand blown into a box to be more thoroughly cleansed and formed intobatting ready to be compressed and stuffed into ticks. I have animproved cleaner-box A, mounted on suitable supports. The top of thisbox is perforated, as all boxes of the kind, to allow dust and the airto escape upward, leaving the cotton clean. This box is adjusted to thechute A of a gin or picker and is provided with a roller B, which iscovered with the perforated material. Air escapes through this roller,and some cotton will cling to the surface of the roller. A piece ofrubber B or other suitable material is nailed to the box A and isadapted to scrape off any cotton that may cling to the roller B.

This roller is operated by a pulley'a and a belt b,driven by a gin orpicker motive power. The cotton falls in a box on a traveling belt orapron G, mounted on rollers D and I), running through the lower part ofbox A. The tension of this belt is regulated by the pivoted support'E,which is regulated by a handscrew E.

In order to regulate the length of the mattress, the lower back end F ofthe box is,

madeadjustable. The top of this back has a piece F attached to it, whichextends back and slides back and forth in a box F. (See Fig.2.)Antifriction-rollers c c are put on the bottom of the adjustable backend F. These rollers move back and forth on a platform G, mounted in thesides of the box just above apron O. p This platform prevents the backpiece from coming in contact with apron O. Rods H, operating in nuts Hand having swivel connections J, are used to move back F to the desiredposition. The dotted lines in Fig. 1 .indicate how far this back piecemay be drawn in. The nuts H are mounted in the box A.

allowance must be made for shrinkage, and a greater allowance must bemade on some material than others.

In manufacturing mattresses an be made and an adjustment is necessary.The thickness of the mattress is regulated by the amount of the materialginned into the condenser-box. An auxiliarypressing-frame is mounted inthe box A. This frame prepares the bat for final compression. A roller Kis journaled in the sides of box A. One end of this frame is mounted onthe shaft of roller K. A roller K is mounted on the other end of thisframe and a traveling apron K is mounted 011 these rollers. Acotton-collector is mounted on the shaft of roller K.

This collector consists of a cross-piece L, having ends extendingthrough the sides of box A and having a number of fingers halved intoit. These fingers aid in collecting the cotton into bats. \Veights m andn are attached to the shaft and cross-piece L to aid in pressing thecotton into bats. There are curved slots f f in the sides of box A forlowering the shaft 7c and cross-piece L. While enough cotton is beingginned or picked to form a bat these frames are held against the frontand upper part of box A in any suitable Way, as by hooks N, which maycatch under the shaft is and cross-piece L. In order to prevent belt Kfrom being pressed up by the cotton-bat while being conveyed to thecompression-rollers, small rollers h are journaled in the frame P, sothat they will hold belt K down. In this way friction on the belt isavoided. The dotted lines indicate the lowest position to which thisframe can be brought. The tension of belt I is regulated by the frame P.The sides of this frame are made in two pieces and the pieces aredovetailed or halved into each other and rods 19 p are attached to thesections of the sides. These rods are coupled together by the doublingor coupling nuts g, which have rightthreads in one end and left threadsin the other, the threads of the rods being made to mesh with thethreads in the nuts. The belts C and K" constitute the lower and upperparts of the compression-chamber. As the material is thrown from the ginor picker it comes in contact with a roller 0, which is provided withiron rods curved back. This roller with the rods beats and disintegratesthe material, the dust going out at the top of the condenser and thestufiing material falling in the condenser in a loose condition, formingan incomplete bat. Something is necessary to collect this incompletebatting. The belt 0 runs just above the floor of the box A. The bathasan exit-pass through or between and beyond the rollers D and D. Thesides of the box pass on the inside of and are halved into the uprightsR. The bat is received from roller D on a scraper S, which is the bottompart of the former-box and tick-holder. This scraper is mounted on anL-shaped piece T, which is bolted to the side frame-pieces of box A. Thelegs of piece S and the ends of the side pieces have plates throughwhich clampscrews T work. The scraper can be adjusted so that it can bebrought almost to roller D,

which is mounted in stationary bearings. The upper part of thetick-holder and formerbox S is mounted at the exit side of therollerpass. The tick is stretched over the tickholder, and the tick isdrawn off by the filling which is forced into it. Any simple device maybe used to prevent the too rapid paying off of the tick. This upper partof the tick is attached to the rack U, in which is mounted roller D".This roller is raised and lowered by means of the racks U and thepinions U. Pressure is exerted upon roller D by means of weights V. Therollers are operated in any suitable way, as by sprocket-gearing.(Illustrated in Fig. 5.) A drive-wheel may be mounted on a counter-shaftWV.

For making bats for pillows and narrow mattresses false sides orpartitions y y are put in the bat-forming box and slots are cut in thetick-holder, as illustrated in Fig. (3. Figs. 7 and 8 illustrate devicesfor holding false sides W in place and at any distance desired. The armsor cross-pieces X Xare held in place by clamp-screws z z. The falsesides have antifriction-rollers on the bottom edges to prevent frictionon the carrier-bottom C. One end of the cross-piece X is attached to thefalse side, and the other end is attached to the side of the box A. Bythe means thus described the widths of the mattresses are controlled. it

Two pads 45 and 5 are passed through the stufling-machine, one of whichis held between the compression-rollers and apron 0 while material isbeing ginned into the cleaner and condenser box to prevent loosematerial from escaping. The other pad is placed on belt 0 and acts as afollower to shove the material through the roller-pass into the tick.The pads are not attached to the apron, but are put in position by hand.P

The mattress is run through the stuffingmachine the second time tocompress it, so that the material will fill the corners of the tick.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. A mattressstuffing machine having compression-rollers and travelingendless aprons, one being mounted above the other, adapted to conveyincomplete batting to said rollers and means for applying pressure tothe upper one of said aprons.

2. A mattress-stuffing machine having compression-rollers, means forcollecting and forming the cotton into bats, traveling endless aprons,one being mounted above the other, adapted to convey the incompletebatting to said rollers, and rollers for applying pressure to the lowerpart of the upper one of said aprons, substantially as described.

3. A mattress-stuffin g machine having compression-rollers, a cleaningand collecting box, traveling aprons one running within and the otherrunning through said box, an auxiliary pressing-frame adapted to operatein connec- IIO tion with the upper one of said aprons, said aprons beingadapted to convey the incomplete batting to said rollers.

4:. A mattress-stuffing machine provided with means for cleaning andcollecting material preparatory to forming bats, said means consistingof a box adapted to receive the batting material from a gin or picker,said box having perforations for the escape of air 0nd apron and meansfor driving said aprons.

6. A mattress-stuffing machine having compression-rollers, a box forcleaning and collecting the stuffing material, said box being providedwith an adjustable back end whereby the length of the mattress may bedetermined, and means for'conveying said material to said rollers.

7. A mattress stuffing machine provided with a cleaning and collectingbox, partitions in said box whereby batting material is collected intobats of different widths, traveling endless aprons, one of said apronsrunning within said box, adapted to convey the batting to be compressed,and an auxiliary frame adapted to start the stuffing between saidaprons.

8. A mattress-stuffing machine having compression-rollers, aconveyor-apron suitably mounted and adapted to carry stuffing materialto said rollers, and an auxiliary conveyerapron mounted above saidfirst-named apron and adapted to aid the same and means for applyingpressure to the lower part of said upper apron. I a

9. A mattress-stuffing machine having compression-rollers, a travelingapron adapted to convey stuffing material to said rollers, a secondtraveling apron and rollers therefor, suitable supports for saidrollers, said second apron having a pivoted mounting at one end, a framemounted in said second apron and intermediate rollers in said framewhereby pressure is applied to the bottom part of said second apron,said aprons adapted at times to travel in parallel planes and in thesame direction.

10. In a mattress-stuffing machine,the combination of a receiving andcleaning. box, collecting and conveying devices mounted in said box,compression-rollers adapted to receive stuffing material from saidconveying devices, suitable driving mechanism, and a tick-holder.

11. In a mattress-stuffing machine,the combination of a receiving andcleaning box, conveying-aprons running in said box, means for applyingpressure to the lower part of one of said aprons, compression-rollersjournaled in a suitable frame, and an exit-pass and tickholder, wherebybatting is prepared from raw material and stufied into ticks in onecontinuous operation.

12. In a mattress-stuffing machine,the combination of a cleaning andcollectingbox, conveying-aprons running in said box, a back end adjustably mounted in said box adapted to determine the length of bats,compression-rollers, means for rotating and raising said rollers, and atick-holder.

13. In a mattress-stuffing machine,the combination of a receiving andcleaning box,traveling endless aprons running in said box,false sidesmounted in said box adapted to regulate the Widths of batting,compression -rollers journaled in a suitable frame, means for rotatingand. raising said rollers, and a tickholder having slots therethroughwhereby ticks of different sizes are held.

14. In a mattress-stufling machine,the combination of a cleaning andcondensing box, endless aprons running in said'box, devices mounted insaid box adapted to determine the length and width of batting,compressionrollers journaled in a suitable frame, and a tick-holderadapted tohold ticks of different sizes.

15. A mattress-stuffing machine provided with a collecting and cleaningbox, a frame pivotally mounted in said box for aiding in collectingmaterial to form batting, an endless apron to convey batting to becompressed, an auxiliary apron running within said box, a frame havingdrums for said apron, said frame being extensible and pivotally mountedat one end, weights for applying pressure to said frame, andcompression-rollers.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my signature in thepresence of witnesses.

CHARLES W. WHITE. Witnesses:

JOHN F. J OYOE, CHARLES M. ADGAT.

